Virat Kohli does “everything under his control”, but there comes a phase in a player’s life where even the first edge is taken by outfield players, RCB head coach Sanjay Bangar said in defense of the former Indian captain after his second golden bald duck . On Saturday, Sunrisers defeated Hyderabad RCB by nine wickets after dismantling the star-studded batting line-up for just 68 runs. Kohli, who hasn’t scored a 100 in any form in over three years, has played first ball ducks in consecutive games with a known pattern of layoffs outside the off-stump.
“He (Kohli) is someone who has performed consistently for RCB. Players go through these kinds of tough times. He started the season really well, almost hit the winning runs in Pune, but then you have a strange run-out or the first lead who feels his bat is in the hands of the fielder,” said Bangar, a long-time batting coach for India.
Bangar sidestepped the issue of Kohli needing a long break as former national team manager Ravi Shastri feels he is “overcooked”.
“He’s definitely doing everything he can control. He’s doing his fitness and skills and taking good breaks and not being pressured. He’s taken regular breaks and will continue to do so in the future.” Bangar was strong in his defense for Kohli, saying he understands people have their opinions as he has been such a key player for India for so long.
“Even if you look at the South African series, the 80 he scored in one of the Test matches was a fine innings,” said Bangar.
RCB skipper Faf du Plessis believes losing four wickets for 20 runs in the first four overs was the downfall of his team.
“The first four overs we shouldn’t have lost so many wickets, it was a bit spicy up front. We still have to find a way to build a foundation (in the games to come) even if it sacrifices a few runs in the power play,” said Du Plessis after the game.
“We just had to go through that phase where the ball swung and got seam, once you get through it it gets easier. This wicket looked the best, expectations were pretty high, it was a really good wicket. There are no apologies though,” Du Plessis said.
Du Plessis was full of praise for South African pacesetter Marco Jansen, as he got three wickets in one.
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“Jansen bowled well in his first over, swung the ball both ways and got the big wickets. You want to make sure you don’t get too emotional.
“It was a bad day at the office, but you have to shut up and learn from it. As a team we have to move forward, it’s a long tournament,” he said.
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